The Department of Tourism says 25,179 people applied for 125,787 seats to watch Kristi Noem and Donald Trump scorch Mount Rushmore July 3 with their red hot flames of love of country. KELO-TV breaks down the applicants by state and finds that 30.8% of the applications came from South Dakota and another 42.3% came from eleven states:
The numbers contrast interestingly with the Mount Rushmore visitor origins found in a 2013 National Park Service survey of visitor groups at the monument (and “groups” doesn’t mean just big gobs of people on bus tours; it means anybody who didn’t come alone, pairs, trios, etc.). That survey found the following distribution of visitor origin states at Rushmore during the week of June 21–27, 2013:
| Home State | respondents |
| Colorado | 166 |
| Minnesota | 165 |
| Wisconsin | 156 |
| California | 138 |
| Iowa | 122 |
| Michigan | 99 |
| Texas | 95 |
| South Dakota | 93 |
| Illinois | 92 |
| Washington | 85 |
| Florida | 74 |
| Nebraska | 73 |
We South Dakotans ranked only eighth among Rushmore visitors, making up only 4% of the crowd at Rushmore in the 2013 survey, yet we make up almost 31% of those seeking fireworks tickets this year. That makes sense in two ways. First, we were likely subjected to far more propaganda from the top levels of state government than any other state’s population. Second, coronavirus is depressing travel plans nationwide, with over 58% of Americans saying they don’t plan to drive more than 250 miles on their next road trip. So folks from more than 250 miles away from the Black Hills are probably less interested than usual in traveling to Mount Rushmore.
Nonetheless, there are some notable shifts from the 2013 survey to the 2020 lottery. Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan are among our top Rushmore visitors, but they didn’t make the top twelve fireworks lottery applicants. In a normal week, you’ll find six Minnesotans for every five Californians at the monument, but among lottery applicants, for every six Minnesotans there were almost 22 Californians. Oregon and Utah also jumped from lower ranks in normal Rushmore visitation into the top twelve in the lottery.
The lucky 5.96% of hopefuls who get seats with Kristi and Donald have been drawn and notified, says Tourism Secretary Jim Hagen. It will be interesting to count their license plates as they stream into the tightly controlled exclusionary zone around the Shrine of Democracy July 3 to see if how well their states of origin align with the distribution in the lottery applications.
Guess I didn’t get selected. Of course, I apply either. I’m betting only genuine, self-deluding MAGAts get in.
grudznick is in, and I think Mr. Trump is among the insanest of all
Make sure NOT to go grudz. There’s contagion of both medical and psychological sorts bound to be present.
I thought it was 7500 “seats” which were going to be allotted.
Want to be my date, Bob? Just promise not to bring any of your demon weed along or they’ll slap us both in irons and leave us to rot in the Rushmore Detention Dungeon. I am told the RDD is a very unpleasant place to be incarcerated.
Grudz,
I feel jilted. You’re not going to get too
close to a left hander in the middle of Ogalala County, after our meal at Bette’s,but you’re going to dive into the Covid infected , mask less masses at the burning of the Black Hills on
July 3rd?
Maybe we need to re-think lunch.
Ogalala Lakota county has a skyrocketing level of infections, Mr. Nix. Despite roadblocks and “shelter at home” orders there are nearly twice as many cases in Ogalala Lakota county as there are in counties with similar populations that have not put up blockades, walls, or locked their people in. See Brookings, Coddington and Hughes as examples.
Plus, as you know they wouldn’t let me pass on the highway as a non-resident of the county, despite lunch being essential, so I fear our lunch will have to wait until the covid bugs are dead and the blockades are down.
Lunch can wait.
These sure are strange days we have here.
Stay safe everyone. There are human beings out there.
Yes, Bob, it is 7,500 seats. Each of the 25,179 applicants applied for an average of 5.0 seats.
I’m curious if the allegedly random drawing will ensure that enough tickets (1,501.29, at that average) are drawn to distribute exactly 7,500 seats.
Light ‘em up! It’s expected when flat-lander east river critters create programs or policies for the semi – and arid west.
https://www.facebook.com/156018181085991/photos/a.637691446251993/3198654080155704/?type=3
Mr. H, my good friend Bob, who may be my date for the evening, was wondering about asses, not chairs. But he’s always been good about sitting on my lap, so we can get two asses in one seat.